Ravens set to battle the Panthers in Week 1 of the preseason
This Thursday, the Carolina Panthers will travel to Baltimore to take on the Ravens in week one of the pre-season. It has been a rough off-season for the Panthers who lost Julius Peppers to the Chicago Bear, released their long time franchise quarterback Jake Delhomme, and their best player had surgery after injuring his forearm in a flag football game.
Rookie Jimmy Clausen had trouble at the beginning of training camp getting the snap from the centre and he fumbled the ball early and often in his first NFL workout. But Clausen has come a long way and can make the transition from third string quarterback to second behind projected starter Matt Moore.
Panthers OT Jordan Gross likes what he sees from his team and is eager to see how they will fair in their first pre-season game. “It’s a little bit of a test [to see] where we're at. We definitely have more work to do,” said Gross. But Carolina has dodged the injury bug for the most part thus far through camp, and they expect to get Pro Bowl receiver Steve Smith back in time for the regular season’s first game.
The Panthers starters won’t have a long night and will be reduced to spectators after the first or second series. All four quarterbacks on their crowded roster will see playing time.
As for the Ravens, they will finally get to see Anquan Boldin, their new number one wide receiver, in action. Boldin, who was acquired from Arizona a few months ago, now joins Derrick Mason at the receiving corps and teammates are excited about the offence’s potential with Boldin in the lineup. He is also expected to boost the Ravens’ red zone woes that were apparent last season.
"The coaches are making it [a focus]," Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco said of Baltimore’s inability to convert in red zone last year. "It's an important part of the field. You get down there, you've got to be successful and put points on the board. We want touchdowns. I think obviously we've got to come away with a field goal at worst, but we want touchdowns, and the only way to get better at scoring touchdowns in there is practicing it.”
But Flacco can’t be hard-pressed to try to force a play and the ball if his intended receiver is not open. “But at the same time, you've got to be smart. Know when to drop the ball down, know when to throw it away. I think we're getting there. I think we're doing a pretty good job."
The pre-season will feature some of the league’s most electrifying running backs. The Ravens are ready to get the ground game running up to speed with Willis McGahee and Ray Rice combining for 1,883 yards last season, with 1,339 of those yards coming from Rice. The Panthers had more balance and production in 2009 with both DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart reaching the 1,000 yard mark.
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